Keeping malware threats at bay and off the computer is usually a job for trained professionals who know exactly what to do in order to prevent virus intrusions. In fact, you might be well acquainted with this particular kind of professional and probably have one up an running on your system right this very instant. As you've undoubtedly guessed, it is an antivirus program, a software designed to make your operating environment as safe as possible.

Such a tool is K7 TotalSecurity, a suite that offers a full spectrum of protection by bundling an antivirus, a firewall, antispam, privacy and phishing protection as well as parental control functionality. As a bonus, the software comes with a handy set of tools you can use to optimize the PC's performance, clean Internet browsing traces as well as obsolete or temporary files, just to name a few.

All the functions can be easily spotted and put to use from the intuitive interface that gives you quick access to all the areas of the program. The current status of each component can be viewed from the 'Security Center' tab, that also enables you to configure and disable or enable any of them.

Another dedicated section includes all the 'Tasks' you can perform, that range from virus scans to history viewing. In order to individually configure the protection components or the application update manager you can simply use 'Settings' tab and tinker with the available options.

You might as well opt to keep the defaults because the system will still be secured to a high degree. For example, the firewall managed to close and stealth some ports (makes them invisible) during our tests, like those used by NETBIOS and Remote Procedure Call (RPC) so they are completely inaccessible. Other ports are visible but closed for remote access.

This security suite offers a pretty good level of protection and immediately detects spyware and adware threats. As soon as a menace is found, a pop-up informs you about that specific risk and the action that needs to be taken. Another useful tool included in the suite is the 'USB Vaccination' that will secure USB drives against autorun-based malware.

K7 TotalSecurity comes with a very good set of features and allows you to configure in detail each component. It is build to effectively identify and fight off a wide array of threats and, given its ease of use and high degree of customization, the software appeals to both advanced and less experienced users.

K7 TotalSecurity was reviewed by Olivian Puha, last updated on March 23rd, 2015